The Little Mermaid” hit big box office numbers during the opening week.
The live-action remake of the 1989 Disney animated classic starring Halle Bailey premiered on Friday and brought in $117.5 million at the US box office — the fifth-best opening for Memorial Day weekend in history, according to CNN citing Box Office Mojo. International ticket sales for, “The Little Mermaid” brought in a total of $185.8 million over the weekend.
The film was given a 95% thumbs by audiences on Rotten Tomatoes and parents are still raving about how impactful the film has been for their little ones by including a Black actress as the lead. Many young girls have showed up to theaters excited with mermaid costumes.
Disney has recast characters originally portrayed as White with actors of different races before. In 1997 the remake of “Cinderella” included the beautiful Black actress, Brandy. Disney introduced its very first Black princess back in 2009, with Tiana in “The Princess and the Frog.”
Disney’s live-action remake of “Aladdin” also debuted on Memorial Day weekend back in 2019. That came in just a little lower than “The Little Mermaid” with an opening weekend of $116.8 million.
Earlier this month, Bailey said she was “honored” to play Ariel in the live action remake, adding she hoped to inspire children of color with the new iteration of the beloved Disney film.
